On October 7th, a 6.3 magnitude earthquake struck western Afghanistan roughly 40 kilometers west of Herat City. The area experienced several aftershocks and another 6.3 magnitude quake just days later on October 11th. The quakes have caused massive destruction across several districts with over 12,000 people affected, a number that is expected to rise. The epicenter of the quake, Zindajan district, is the worst affected with nearly 1,300 deaths, many more injuries, and 100 percent of homes destroyed. The United Nations (UN) Cluster System partners have so far assisted in the areas of emergency shelter and non-food items, food security and agriculture, protection, and water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH). UN partners are also responding in the area of health, having deployed primary care, maternal and reproductive health, and mental health and psychosocial support services to the population, and the World Health Organization has provided 25 metric tons of health supplies and medicines.
As of now, there is no request for the MGH Global Disaster Response and Humanitarian Action (GDRHA) team to deploy. We are in touch with our partners and will continue to monitor the needs as the situation evolves. If you are interested in helping those affected in Afghanistan, we recommend donating to the following organizations:
- Uplift Afghanistan Fund is a charitable fund that supports grassroots organizations doing impactful, community-led work in Afghanistan & with Afghan refugees globally. Their local volunteers have been providing search and rescue as well as water, sanitation, medical supplies, and temporary shelter resources.
- International Medical Corps, one of GDHRA’s NGO partners, has a country team responding with health services and supplies.
